Catch Your Breath
by Alisia Vi Roberto
Summary: Elizaveta has it all. She has a great fiance who loves her, a steady career, a great best friend... and one man makes her question all of that. DISCLAIMER: I OWN NONE OF THESE CHARACTERS!
1. Chapter 1

Throughout the history of the world, lives have crossed.

Love has happened where none thought it could.

And no matter what we all do, it happens. Humans have come to accept this mere fact, come to crave it, actually. Love is what keeps us alive.

And on that note, let us begin a tale of one man's fight to win the girl.


	2. Chapter 2

A girl ran down the street, laughing, trying to get out of the freezing rain.

It was in the middle of March, so spring was approaching fast.

The girl ran past lots of shops, searching for the right one.

She stopped suddenly when she found it. The store had a blue overhang, and water dripped to the ground from its tips. She quickly ran through the wall of dripping water, covering her exposed head feebly with her hands. She sighed in relief, looking back at the quickly flooding streets.

She opened the glass door to the shop, a little bell tingling.

She was hit with a wall of warmth as the heated store closed in around her.

A clerk looked up from the counter.

"Hello there, Elizaveta!" The blonde chirped from behind the counter.

"Good morning, Florinda! Is Roderich here?" Elizaveta grinned, an inside joke gleaming in her eyes.

Florinda chuckled. "Oh, he is. He's been waiting for you." She gestured to the door to the upstairs, where Elizaveta and her boyfriend, Roderich, lived happily.

Elizaveta beamed at the door, ready to open it and race upstairs.

"Elizaveta! Do you know what you'll name the kids yet?" Florinda's eyes glinted with naughtiness as she smirked.

Elizaveta rolled her eyes.

"Florinda, you _know _that if that happens, it won't be for a long time!"

"Oh sure!" Florinda laughed.

Elizaveta waved her off and opened the door to the apartment. She could hear Roderich playing his piano in the next room.

She smiled and sighed dreamily. She loved hearing him play. It was so beautiful.

"Roderich?" She called into the next room. "I'm home!"

The playing stopped suddenly. Someone pushed out a piano bench, and stood up. Footsteps got closer and closer, until Roderich rounded the corner and found Elizaveta hanging up her coat by the door.

Elizaveta loved him so much. He had dark hair, often slightly disheveled. His blue eyes where just barely hidden behind his glasses, which Elizaveta also adored.

"I missed you when I woke up, Elizaveta," He said to her, smiling. "Your note said hardly anything at all..."

Elizaveta smiled.

The note she'd left at 3 a.m. that morning had been hurried and vague. She wanted to go watch the sunrise. It was on her bucket list. She found so much joy in checking off "Watch the sunrise in the rain".

She'd explained it in her note, but she knew Roderich would find it silly. He never really cared about bucket lists. He never really thought about what would happen when he died. He just was perfectly content with not knowing. Elizaveta knew that she should be happy that he was so content, but she always felt a twinge of loneliness whenever he laughed off her deep thoughts about the universe and death.

But she loved him.

What else could she ask for? She had a wonderful house, a wonderful boyfriend, a wonderful store, and a wonderful best friend who helped out at the store all the time.

The two of them had met when Elizaveta had been dragged by her grandparents to a classical music concert. She really did not like it very much at the time, but she went because she loved them very much.

Elizaveta was not squashed between her grandparents like she might have hoped. She was forced to sit with her Grandpa on her right and a _stranger _on her left.

She dared a peak at who she would be spending the next two hours squashed next to.

It was an EXTREMELY good-looking man!

"Hi, I'm Elizaveta." She said to him.

The man turned to her and smiled.

"I'm Roderich. So, you're a fan of classical music?" He said it almost like a joke.

She wanted so badly to impress this man.

"Why, of course I am!"

His eyes brightened, becoming very excited. He smiled wider.

"That's lovely! Who is your favorite composer?" Roderich asked casually.

Elizaveta was quiet for a second. DAMMIT! She didn't know about any composers!

"Umm... It's too hard to pick! There are so many!" She said, hoping he fell for it.

He did.

"Oh, I know the feeling!" And he went on to talk about Beethoven and Mozart and lots of other people that Elizaveta was unfamiliar with, until the lights dimmed and the music started playing.

During the concert, Elizaveta tried so hard not to fall asleep. She rested her head on her propped up arm, trying to look absolutely fascinated. Roderich's eyebrows scrunched together and he looked deep in thought throughout the whole concert.

After it ended, Elizaveta tried to mask her relief.

Roderich let out an annoyed breath of air.

"They kept playing the WRONG NOTES!" He fumed. "It was COMPLETELY FLAT! No feeling in the pieces whatsoever!"

Elizaveta was shocked. It sounded very good to her inexperienced ears.

"Oh, I totally agree." She said, still playing along.

He smiled at her, eyes getting soft.

"Do you want to... Get together sometime?" He asked shyly.

Elizaveta beamed. "Yes, I would love to."

And so they did.

That was two years before.

Elizaveta had been hoping over the past few months that he would propose, but it seemed that he had no ability to speak his mind! She was growing very impatient with him.

She dropped hints, left wedding planner ads on the table, talked about her parent's wedding, told him how she would LOVE to be proposed to, and even asked how serious he was about her! It never seemed to work.

That night, Elizaveta sat in an armchair, reading a book and sipping some tea. She was listening to Roderich play an original song he'd composed.

"Elizaveta?" He called.

"Yes?" She replied.

"Would you come here?" He said.

She smiled knowingly. He probably just wanted some input on his composition.

She came up behind him and put her arms around his shoulders.

"What is it?" She asked.

He turned around and motioned for her to sit down as he stood up.

She sat down.

He got down on a knee.

Her heart-rate picked up and she blushed excitedly as he took one of her hands.

"Elizaveta... I promise to love you more than anything else in the world for the rest of your life. I want to spend every day remaining in my lifetime with you, trying to make you happy. I want to play music for you forever. Will you..." He took a deep breath. "Marry me?"

Elizaveta grinned hugely. Before she could stop herself she tackled him, kissing him fiercely.

"Yes! Oh yes!" She cried.

Elizaveta was so happy. She knew that for the rest of her life, she'd get to hear him play music and go to concerts with him and just do everything with him! She'd never have to leave his side, and they'd have children together! Elizaveta was so full of glee, her head was spinning.

...

Once again, the girl was running.

Only it was a bright, beautiful day.

Elizaveta was so excited to get home to her fiance, that she was running down the street as fast as she possibly could.

She skidded to a halt in front of the same blue overhang and entered their small store. The bell dinged, and Florinda looked up from a magazine.

"Elizaveta! How did the meeting go?"

"Fine, I guess. It was pretty boring, they were just discussing prices and declines in profit and tax rate. Nothing very interesting."

"Oh, okay then," Florinda smirked. "Roderich is in the back room, talking to a new instructor."

Elizaveta sighed.

"Thanks, Florinda..." Elizaveta was annoyed, she wouldn't get any time alone with Roderich! Whenever a new instructor came to the music store, Roderich spent ALL DAY with them discussing what they play, how they learned it, blah blah blah!

She went through the isles, passing CD's, Records, cassette tapes, violins, keyboards, a drum-set, a guitar-rack, a box full of ukuleles, and pretty much anything else music related you could think of.

She finally made it to the back, and opened the door to the vacant instruction room.

There were lots of doors in the back, all leading to small rooms with two chairs. Each instructor put his/her name on the door, and the instrument they teach underneath it. Elizaveta found the room they had not filled yet. There was only one.

"Elizaveta!" Roderich said when he saw her.

There were two other men inside. One was ruggedly handsome with tan skin and dark, messy hair, and green eyes. The other sat on the ground humming to himself.

"This is Antonio, our new guitar instructor."

Antonio extended his hand and Elizaveta took it. "_Encantado de conocerte_." He said, kissing her hand.

"Yeah, hello..." Elizaveta said, smiling, unsure of what he'd said.

"And this is his friend, uh... Antonio, what's his name again?"

Antonio turned around and face-palmed. "Gilbert... That's Gilbert."

Gilbert hopped up and grinned in a way that made you wonder what he was up to.

"What's up?" He said.

Elizaveta was shocked. He was GORGEOUS! He was albino, so he had white hair and red eyes. His white hair was messy, but in a very attractive way. He was EXTREMELY good looking!

He smirked, as if reading her mind.

She shook her head, reminding herself that she loved Roderich, and no matter how good looking another man was, Roderich was _always _better. He had to be!

"I think we'll get along _awesomely_." Gilbert said.

Elizaveta blushed a little and said quietly, "It was nice meeting you," She turned to Roderich, who squinted at Gilbert territorially. "Darling, I'll be upstairs if you need me."

Roderich made a point of kissing her on the forehead and putting an arm around her.

"Well, gentleman, say goodbye to my _fiance__." _

_"_Goodbye, Elizaveta!" Antonio smiled cheerfully.

"See ya, Elizaveta." Gilbert smirked.

"Bye..." Elizaveta hurried out of the room, and found that her heart was beating too fast for her own comfort.


	3. Chapter 3

Gilbert had been living with Antonio for several weeks, when he intended to only stay for a few days. It was staring to piss off Antonio.

"Man, you gotta get off your butt and find a job!"

Gilbert always waved him off, saying something like "Yeah yeah." or "I'm still looking..."

His younger brother had kicked him out of the house after two years of doing nothing! Gilbert found that very unfair. Why couldn't he have just kicked him out after several weeks?

On top of that, every time Gilbert got a job he got fired!

Apparently, awesomeness was not nearly enough for the world to give him a good job.

The last job he'd had was as a host at some restaurant. He got fired for telling a complaining customer to fuck off... They were complaining about how their seat was too close to the window, so it was cold.

That had been a little over a year ago.

So Gilbert was spending his days on Antonio's couch watching television, eating chips, pizza, and candy.

Antonio got more and more annoyed every day.

He couldn't leave Gilbert alone; he'd throw a party and wreck the house!

He couldn't take Gilbert places; he'd embarrass himself!

Gilbert always opted to stay, but Antonio never let him. Antonio had decided that it was better to embarrass himself than get arrested for something.

One day, Gilbert was laying on Antonio's couch, watching _Teen Mom_. He was yelling at Maci to _just dump Ryan already_ when Antonio stepped in his vision.

"Hey!" Gilbert whined.

"Gilbert, I got a job at this music store teaching guitar." Antonio said.

"That's cool, bro. Now move, please."

Antonio didn't budge.

"What do you want?" Gilbert said.

Antonio sighed. "Dude, I can't trust you here on your own after last time."

"What?! It was only a few people..."

"A _few? _Gilbert, there were over a hundred people in here!"

"Damn that was an awesome party..." Gilbert sighed, remembering.

"Anyway, you have to come with me to work from now on," Antonio said. "Get dressed. We're leaving."

Gilbert groaned loudly, earning an eye roll from Antonio.

He decided it was best not to test his limits, so he got up.

He walked sluggishly to the bathroom, dragging his feet. He closed the door behind him and looked in the mirror.

He didn't need a shower, but he did need to shave. So he shaved and put on some deodorant, grabbed a blue button-down shirt, some dark jeans, and threw on his high tops.

Antonio looked him up and down.

"Wow, you get ready really fast! That was what, ten minutes?" He said, checking his watch.

Gilbert smirked.

"Well, it's cold. Better wear a coat, man..." Antonio said.

Gilbert grabbed a winter jacket and pushed the door open, going outside.

They got into the car and drove off.

Gilbert propped his feet up on the dashboard, which always pissed Antonio off, but he did it anyway.

He gazed out the window and began to think.

The real reason he didn't want to do anything was because he was very depressed. Like, seriously depressed. He didn't really feel like telling Antonio about it, so he kind of kept it to himself.

The reason he was depressed was because of a woman named Felicia.

Gilbert had been dating her since the eleventh grade.

She had long blonde hair, green eyes, and she was very pretty.

Gilbert loved her very much; he always did. Hell, he still did.

But, out of nowhere, when they were twenty-two, she ran off with this guy named Toris, leaving him. He hadn't seen her since.

The part Gilbert couldn't believe was... How could she have left him like that when they'd been in love for seven years! He'd given her so much of his life, and she payed him back by leaving him for some guy that was way too dependent on other people.

He remembered the day clearly.

...

_"Felicia, be reasonable!" Gilbert shouted, begging._

_She looked at him, with those huge, beautiful green eyes. Gilbert had always had a thing for green eyes._

_"I_ am_ being totes reasonable Gilbert. I love him." She said it again, those three words that hit Gilbert like punches in the gut._

_"Y-you don't mean that..." He whimpered weakly, trying to feebly get her to realize her mistake._

_"No, like, I'm totally serious right now, Gilbert." She said, trying to sound soft._

_"Felicia... I-I thought you loved me..." He whispered, dropping to his knees. _

_She looked away, clearly either ashamed of herself or unable to look him in the eye while he was being this pathetic. _

_"Well, I guess you, like, thought wrong." _

_Gilbert felt tears streaming down his cheeks. His heart had fallen to his stomach. But... it had been so real. How could it have all been a lie? She never had loved him? It was all a joke? _

_And with that, she closed the door behind her and she was gone._

...

Gilbert hadn't seen her since then. It had been about two years since she ran away with her new boyfriend.

Gilbert gagged whenever he thought about how disgustingly in love they must be. He hated her, but he couldn't help but love her at the same time. He thought about her all day, all night. He worried about her.

He really just wanted her to be safe.

So, after that, he was too depressed to live on his own, so he moved in with his little brother, Ludwig. Ludwig was really nice at first, but then he started getting annoyed, because Gilbert kept getting fired from jobs.

Then, Ludwig kicked him out.

Now, here he was, living with one of his best friends, abusing their friendship.

He sighed. Perhaps that was the way he was meant to live.

He continued to gaze out the window.

Outside, the world was lazily busy. everywhere people were rushing about, but nobody actually seemed in too much of a hurry. That might have had something to do with the fact that traffic was super bad.

He looked at all the people walking by on the sidewalk. There were families, singles, couples, teenagers, grandparents, dogs, friends... They all seemed to be in not too much of a hurry today.

Then, someone caught his eye.

She was in a hurry.

He could tell by the way she looked left and right as she was crossing the street, by the way she bounced up and down as she walked.

Her cheeks were very flushed from the cold.

He then noticed her face, and he sucked in his breath quickly.

Her face. It was so bright, so beautiful... He couldn't even understand what he was seeing. He'd never even seen anything like it. Her delicate jawline, her full lips, her brown, wavy hair... She made him a little but dizzy.

He couldn't believe he'd never noticed her before.

She looked very familiar with the streets, so she must have lived there. If they lived in the same place, Gilbert would have remembered that face. He couldn't imagine himself ever forgetting it.

He realized then that he was holding his breath and his face was becoming warmer and warmer by the second.

His heart thumped in his chest.

"Oh..." He choked out.

"Are you okay, man?" Antonio said from beside him.

"Yeah..." He mumbled quickly.

He wanted her.

He didn't even know her name or anything about her... but she looked like she had to have a beautiful name. Something delicate and lovely like her, lie Francesca or Rosaline or Victoria or Madeleine. She looked like she'd have a beautiful name.

He hoped that she had green eyes.

Normally when he saw a good-looking girl on the street he'd whistle or something, but he was too breath-taken to do anything but stare, his mouth gaping open.

Then, the car started moving.

He craned his neck so he could see her on the street for just a second more. Then she was gone.

He sighed. Now he would go and be depressed again, and he didn't even know that girl!

The car pulled into a parking space several minutes later.

Antonio got out of the car.

"C'mon, Gilbert! We're gonna be late!" He said.

Gilbert grumbled and trudged outside and slammed the door shut behind him once he had entered the store.

The walls were an olive green color, and the floor was golden from the polished wood. It smelled like a bookstore, a scent that Gilbert had always found a little bit comforting...

The entire place was lined with instruments, electronic devices, and music books. The walls were lined with strings instruments and there was even a drum set in a corner. There were three different pianos, all different sizes, shapes, and colors.

The girl at the counter was a small blonde with a green ribbon in her hair. Gilbert guessed her to be around twenty or so.

She looked up as the bell rang, and smiled.

"Oh! Are either of you Antonio?"

Antonio grinned one of his famous dazzling smiles. "Why yes, that would be me."

She blushed and giggled. Gilbert rolled his eyes. _Oh please_.

"Well, hi Antonio! Roderich's in the back waiting for you! And... who's this?" She asked of Gilbert, nodding to him.

Gilbert didn't like her. It was something in the way she was so cheerful to Antonio, but regarded him like some filthy dog that stumbled into her mansion behind her poodle. Well, she wasn't that obvious about it, but Gilbert could just _tell _she was a huge bitch.

Or maybe Gilbert was just looking for things to hate.

Or maybe he had a bias against blondes.

Who knows? He just did not like her, for whatever reason.

Antonio sighed.

"Oh, this is Gilbert... He's my friend. I guess I can leave him up here with y-"

"NO!" Gilbert blurted out, then backtracked. "Um, I mean I kinda wanna see, like, where Antonio will be working..." He gave Antonio a pleading look, trying to get across how badly he did not want to hang out alone with this girl.

Antonio glared at him, but sighed.

"Okay, I guess. Come on, Gilbert." He said.

The girl smiled and waved, as if she had no idea what just happened.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Antonio mumbled, "You're such a jackass..."

Gilbert snickered.

...

Gilbert would have almost preferred to chat with Ms. Bubbly out there.

Those two could have been talking about music for hours! (He knew, of course, it had only been about ten minutes, but never mind that! He was bored as _fuck_!)

They had started by discussing the kinds of things Antonio would be teaching kids, and then they started discussing how he learned guitar, then Antonio decided he just _had_ to ask how Roderich had learned piano! Then, they got into a conversation about the best composers or some other bullshit, and then Gilbert had sat down and stopped trying to follow along.

He kept trying to not think about _her_.

But her beautiful face kept sneaking into his consciousness.

Then, another bell rung at the front of the store.

Some talking, another person had the displeasure of chatting with Blondie!

Someone came closer to the room, and opened the door.

He was looking down, and began humming a little tune to himself to pass the time.

"Elizaveta!" Roderich exclaimed.

Gilbert's head snapped up, and he almost fainted. He almost scrambled backwards, clutching the wall.

It was _her!_

She smiled at Roderich, and looked at the two other men in the room, as if suddenly realizing they were not alone.

He cleared his throat. "This is Antonio, our new guitar instructor."

Antonio flashed his flirtatious smile once again, and stuck out his hand, and she took it. He pressed his lips to her feminine hand, which was just as perfect as the rest of her. Gilbert's heart beat fast.

"_Encantado de conocerte_." Antonio said.

"Yeah, hello..." The girl, apparently Elizaveta, said, voice confused.

_Oh, god. Her voice is so fucking perfect..._

Roderich nodded to Gilbert, as if just noticing him.

"And this is his friend, uh... Antonio, what's his name again?" Roderich said. Gilbert glared at him. _Seriously? It's two fucking syllables. Gil-bert. Not that hard, bro._

Antonio suddenly remembered Gilbert as well and turned around. He saw Gilbert sitting on the ground, arms wrapped around his legs. He slammed his forehead into the palm of his hand.

"Gilbert... That's Gilbert." He sounded very embarrassed.

Gilbert jumped up, probably way too eager. He didn't care. This was his big chance.

What would he say, to woo her over? Make her _his? _What could the very first words he ever spoke to her be...

"What's up?" He blurted out.

He was kicking himself, but he was determined to remain cool. He smirked confidently.

Something registered on her face, something he couldn't even recognize. Confusion? Shock? Nervousness? Lust? A mixture of all four? Either way, he liked it. It was very beautiful, just like the rest of her face.

He couldn't help himself, he allowed himself to smile stupidly. It probably looked more like a smirk to her though. He was just so glad he had some sort of effect on her.

The second thing he said? Of course it was something heroic, romantic, and sexy...

"I think we'll get along _awesomely_." He said.

_Nailed it. _He thought to himself.

Her cheeks turned a light shade of pink, and Gilbert had to lean against the wall a little so he wouldn't melt right then and there. Oh, _god_ he wanted her! She was so adorable!

"It was nice meeting you." She said quietly, almost shyly.

He jumped for joy in his head. He had an effect, even if it was a small one.

Roderich glared at him.

"Darling, I'll be upstairs if you need me." She said to him.

Roderich kissed her on the forehead and put an arm around her.

"Well, gentleman, say goodbye to my _fiance__."_ He said, perhaps a bit aggressively.

_"_Goodbye, Elizaveta!" Antonio smiled cheerfully.

Gilbert was a little annoyed. Well, at least they weren't married. That would totally suck. But... maybe he could allow himself to hope, maybe even a little...

He took a deep breath.

"See ya, Elizaveta." He smirked again, knowing she must have liked that a little.

He was right. She blushed again.

"Bye..." Then she hurried out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Gilbert kept staring at the door, and Antonio elbowed him.

Antonio cleared his throat.

"Well, I guess I'll be here in the morning."

"All right then. Take care." Roderich replied, still squinting suspiciously.

As soon as they got in the car and Gilbert had buckled his seat belt, he promised himself one thing.

She was gonna love him.


	4. Chapter 4

Elizaveta lounged on the couch, reading a book.

She was incredibly bored, for it was a quiet Saturday morning and Roderich had gone downstairs for work. Elizaveta did not have anything important to do until the next day. So she was pretty much stuck inside all day long.

She sighed and set down her book. She stretched her arms out, swinging her legs around to touch the floor.

It had been a boring week. She hadn't had much time to do anything she wanted to do, and yet now she had all the time in the world but couldn't think of a single thing she wanted to be doing.

She stood up and rubbed her eyes.

Perhaps if she got motivated and helped out in the store or something she'd feel more accomplished.

She walked lazily to the bathroom, and stripped down. She paused before getting into the hot shower to look at herself in the mirror.

She felt only dissatisfaction. She was not as pretty as someone like Florinda... But then again she really did not care very much about such things. Roderich thought she was pretty, so there really was no problem.

Then she stopped herself. Wait... did he?

She couldn't remember him ever really saying how he thought she looked... Panic began to rise in her gut.

He probably thought she was _hideous_ if he'd never said anything!

She looked down at her trembling hands and clenched them, trying very hard to control herself.

"Calm down, Elizaveta..." She whispered to herself.

She quietly got into the shower, making sure to wash herself very thoroughly. She even used her special pomegranate-scented body wash, so she'd smell even sweeter than before.

She also made sure to brush and dry her hair so it was very silky and smooth, flowing down her back. She even applied makeup, just to make sure that she looked her very best. Roderich would _have _to compliment her!

She put on her regular black skinny jeans, converse, and a pretty blouse. It had flowers on it, and was very spring-y, which seemed appropriate, considering it was slowly growing warmer outside.

Elizaveta looked at herself once more in the mirror before grabbing her jacket and scarf and exiting the apartment.

She clomped down the stairs, and entered the shop. She almost immediately saw Roderich, who seemed to be very busy. He was talking to a man who had a little boy beside him, holding a violin. The man seemed to be complaining.

Elizaveta came up behind Roderich and said calmly, "What is the problem, sir?"

The man looked at her and his eyes widened. He coughed once and said gruffly, "My son here is very unhappy with his instructor."

Elizaveta rolled her eyes. Arthur.

"What did he do this time?" She asked.

Arthur had a problem with... Many things, including small children. If a child messed up on a piece, he'd be very harsh about it. Sure, he was a great instructor, but the Brit just could not hold back his tongue.

Elizaveta sighed. Three complaints for him in the last month. She'd have to fire him.

"He called my son a 'bloody git'!" He lowered his voice for the last part, as if these words had not already been shouted in his son's face.

The boy continued to smile and bounce up and down on the balls of his feet. Elizaveta could see exactly what about this child had ticked Arthur off. He wouldn't keep _still_.

Then, something very bad happened.

Arthur burst loudly into the room, and he looked like he was on a war-path. He was headed straight for the man, and you could tell from the look in his eye that he had been drinking. A lot. Another one of his problems.

Then, Antonio rushed out from one of the rooms and grabbed Arthur around the waist.

"Get-" He hiccuped. "The bloody hell off of me you-" Hiccup. "WANKER!"

Antonio dragged Arthur away, and Elizaveta apologized profusely to the man and his son, making sure to offer them a HUGE discount.

She rushed over to where Arthur was on the ground, struggling beneath Antonio.

"LEMME GO!" He yelled.

Antonio held him down just fine. Elizaveta got down close to his face and hissed, "You, sir, are fired."

Arthur's eyes widened and he seemed to come to a little bit. "N-no! Please, don't fire me! I'll b-be g-" Hiccup. "Good! Promise!"

Elizaveta shook her head at him. She looked at Antonio solemnly. "Would you please call Alfred and have him pick Arthur up?"

Antonio nodded and pulled out his phone, dialing quickly. He stood up and walked away, and Arthur just sat there looking dazed.

Officially, Arthur had been "fired" six times. Elizaveta just couldn't take it, when Alfred kept coming in to beg for Arthur's job back, promising that he'd be good and not drink or anything. She always caved in.

She knew that she probably would this time too.

After Alfred had picked Arthur up, mumbling about how annoying he could be sometimes, Elizaveta decided to go talk to Roderich.

She kissed his cheek. "How are you today, Roderich?"

He laughed a little. "I'm just fine, Elizaveta. That was quite a way to start the day..." He checked his watch. "Huh. It's only 10:34. Elizaveta..." He looked at her.

"Yes?" Her heart jumped with excitement.

He sighed. "Could you do me a huge favor and go straighten up the shelves?"

Her heart sank. Of course. Work.

"Oh, don't worry! You won't be working alone or anything!" He reassured her.

She got her hopes up again. "Really?" She asked enthusiastically.

He scratched the back of his neck. "Um, yeah. Gilbert came with Antonio to work today and... we figured we could use him for something."

Elizaveta sucked in her breath. Great. _Him_.

"U-unless you'd rather not..." Roderich said.

"Oh no! That's fine!" She said quickly.

Why did she say that? All she had to do was say _Oh, I'd rather do something else please. _But no, she just let her mouth say whatever it wanted to!

She kissed Roderich quickly and walked over to the shelves, scanning each isle for Gilbert.

She finally found him sitting cross-legged in front of the music-books. He was reading one. She had to walk closer to see which one it was, but she was surprised to see that it was the Green Day's _American Idiot_ one.

She walked closer, not sure what to say. She loved that album, and it had been forever since she'd gotten to gush about it. Before she could think of something to say, he looked up and saw her.

His red eyes looked right at her, and for a second they were confused. Then he smirked.

"Hey." He said. He nodded at her.

She blushed and quickly gave a brisk little wave. "Hi."

He motioned for her to sit next to him. She timidly took a place next to him, a good foot away, though.

She coughed a little, nervous. How could she be so attracted to this man, while she loved another one so much? How could fate be this cruel to her? He was several inches taller than Roderich, and he was- to Elizaveta's dismay- much better looking.

"So..." She said. "You like Green Day?"

His eyes seemed to brighten up and he looked at her as if analyzing her whole self. She felt so... exposed to him. What could be possibly be seeing that made him look at her like that?

He smiled, seeming to accept whatever he was thinking about. "Yeah, they're awesome. Do you?"

She nodded.

He pointed to the book in his hand.

"Which song on this album do you like best?"

She was quiet for a second. Nobody had ever asked her that before. She replied quietly, "'Wake Me Up When September Ends'."

He smiled knowingly, showing his white teeth. "I like them all, but I seem to have a tendency to listen to 'Whatsername' more than the rest."

She looked at him quizzically. Such personal information, and they hardly even knew each other! This was a lot more... relaxed than it should be. He was acting like they'd been friends for years!

"So..." She said. The silence was awkward, but seemingly only to her. He just continued to smirk.

"So?" He said. He almost seemed to be enjoying her awkwardness.

"Aren't we supposed to be... working?" She said.

He chuckled. "It isn't like they're paying me."

She sighed. That was true. She didn't have to be there at the moment either.

"Hey..." He said, suddenly seeming just a teeny bit... nervous. "Do you wanna get outta here?" He said.

She was taken aback. So bold of him! In the back of her head, she was swooning for this bold statement. In the front of her head, the more rational part, she focused on Roderich's face in her mind.

She said nothing, for these two parts of her were at war.

He sighed. "Oh, c'mon." He got up and reached out a hand to help her up.

She got up on her own and brushed off her clothes.

He laughed. "I guess that means yes then?"

She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and nodded slightly.

Elizaveta checked left and right to see if anyone was watching, and they weren't. Then she motioned for Gilbert to hurry out the door. He obliged, smirking all the while. She rushed outside after him, and the door closed behind them.


	5. Chapter 5

Gilbert could hardly believe she'd given in that easily!

All it took was him _asking _if she wanted to go somewhere, and she'd just... done it. He was amazed, and a bit flattered. Was he really that enticing?

He looked at her walking beside him.

Sh seemed to feel his eyes on her, for she looked up at him quizzically, raising an eyebrow. _Oh, god... _He thought. _That's so hot!_

Gilbert wasn't even quite sure where they were going. They had been wandering in almost a circle for about an hour, and they still had a lot of time to kill. They'd hardly even spoken a word to each other.

Gilbert had to figure out a way to get her to talk.

He didn't really care what she talked about, he just wanted to know about _her. _She wanted her to know about _him. _

What was wrong with him? He'd never wanted to tell someone this much about himself before. He kept so much held inside, his interests, tastes, deep thoughts, and dreams.

He wanted so badly to tell her _everything_.

He coughed awkwardly.

"Yes?" She said, as if reading his mind.

"So... what's your favorite color?" H asked. _Well, that's a start, I guess..._

She laughed. "After all this time being silent, _that's_ what you have to ask? It's green, by the way. Olive green." She said softly.

He smiled at her. "I guess that must be why the walls of the store are olive green."

"Yes, I picked out that color," She squinted at him. "Well, while we're on this topic, what's _your _favorite color?"

He thought for a second. "Red." He finally replied.

"Why?"

"Because... well, my eyes, for one thing. Also, it kind of is a really powerful-ish color, you know?" He said. He hoped she understood what he was trying to say.

"Yeah." She replied simply.

He grinned, relieved that she hadn't gotten weirded out by his explanation. She seemed to understand what he was saying.

"Why do you like olive green?"

"Hmm..." She closed her eyes. "Well, I honestly don't have much of a reason like you do... I just love how it looks. It's so pretty, but it doesn't get much credit for being that way, you know?" She sounded a little sad when she said it.

Gilbert nodded. Then, he wondered, just for a moment. Was she always recognized for how pretty she was? He shook his head. No, that was not possible. Anyone who was close to her like Roderich was couldn't possibly ever go a day without telling her how gorgeous she was. Could they?

He decided it was best not to ask about that. Perhaps when he got the chance, he would casually state that she was pretty, so it wouldn't seem pretty. Even so, "pretty" does not accurately describe how Elizaveta looked. She was... perfect. Gilbert found her so physically attractive that he could hardly keep himself from suddenly wrapping her in a hug... He shook his head. No, he couldn't think like that. What was he even _doing_?

"What's the matter?" She asked.

"Huh?"

"You look... upset." She said casually.

She'd caught him. He made a snap decision and resorted to his classic smirk.

"And you were... watching?" He said. He'd caught _her _too!

Her cheeks turned a little bit pink, which Gilbert liked. A lot.

"N-no!" She sputtered.

He chuckled, trying to seem more confident than he was.

"Okay, whatever you say." And they were silent.

After a few more minutes of walking, Gilbert saw a park with lots of little kids.

"Hey, why don't we go there?" He pointed to the park.

Elizaveta raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

He shrugged. "I like playgrounds, I guess..."

"Uh huh. And how _old_ are you, Gilbert?" she smiled mischievously.

"Twenty-four. Why?"

She shook her head, chuckling. "I've never in my life met someone over fourteen who would willingly go to a playground and actually _use _it for what it is meant for."

Could she be the "I'm too cool for everything" type? Man, that would seriously SUCK. Only one way to find out. "Well, do YOU wanna go play on the playground?" He smirked, trying to look cool and confident, sure she could see right through it.

She grinned. "I would absolutely _love _to."

Gilbert gulped and his face heated up. God, she was so _cute_. Why did she have to be so cute? If she hadn't been engaged, then he totally would have just kissed her right there. Without hesitation. Actually, with any other girl he would have gone ahead and done it. But something about her... she made him _want _so much, but for some reason... he was completely able to restrain himself.

He looked away to hide his flushed face, but by her giggling he could tell she'd seen it. This only resulted in a deeper blush.

She stopped giggling. "Let's go, then." She started walking towards the playground. He jogged after her.

"Let's go on the swings." She said, as if it were such a normal thing for two people over twenty to go swing on the swings at a playground.

"Hey, Elizaveta?"

"Yeah?"

"How old are YOU?"

"... I'm twenty-four as well," She sighed. "Why?"

"I was just wondering."

"It's because I look young, right?" She said, voice straining a little.

"No! You look like you're in your twenties. Why would you think that?" Gilbert rushed out.

"I dunno. I guess people have always been making judgements about my appearance."

Gilbert could hardly believe that. How could anybody judge her appearance in any other way but to say it was mind-bogglingly beautiful? It didn't matter what your type was, Gilbert thought, she was perhaps the prettiest thing on Earth. He wished he could tell her so. But he imagined that Roderich probably told her that often enough. _How could he not?_

"_Really?_" He said.

"Yeah... When I was little... everybody thought I was a boy. There was this one annoying guy... he always would get in fights with me and call me Eli the homo... So I beat him up, and that only made everything worse."

That story sounded weirdly familiar to Gilbert. Eli the homo... Where had he heard that before?

Then it hit him. _Oh shit_. He was the annoying kid!

"D-do you remember his name?"

"No... I just remember he was albino, like you." She said, totally oblivious.

Gilbert was blushing again, but Elizaveta didn't notice. His mind was racing. He was _six! _How could he have known that one day that tomboy would turn into an extremely hot girl?! She'd switched schools in the second grade, so he hadn't seen her since then. Thank god it had been eighteen years and she didn't remember his name!

"I swear... If I ever saw him again, I'd kick his ass." She growled.

"Well, what if he turned out to be a really nice guy? I mean he could be really sorry for what he'd said to you I mean maybe he didn't mean it..." Gilbert urged.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "That asshole has made me self-conscious for eighteen years. You think I can just... _forgive_ him?"

"O-of course not!" He said, trying to act cool again. "Well, it wouldn't hurt to try..."

She shrugged. "Well, it's not like I'll ever actually see him, so what's the point?"

"Yeah, I guess." Gilbert was so thankful she hadn't remembered the kid's name.

She laughed quietly to herself.

"What is it?" Gilbert asked.

"Well..." She smiled up at him. "I only just met you and I'm telling you such personal things."

Gilbert smirked at her, his super-ego returning. "Yeah, I have that effect on people."

She slugged his arm (which hurt like HELL... Yeah this was definitely Eli from first grade...) and sat on one of the swings.

They were on the swings for about two hours. They talked and talked and talked. The parents with their children looked at them awkwardly as they swung, not quite sure what to make of the two adults playing on the swings.

Gilbert learned that the more he got to know her, the more he wanted to kiss her.

But he couldn't.

Not yet.

...

Later that day, when Gilbert arrived at home, it was nearly 8:00 pm. Antonio was really confused.

"Where were you all day? I looked for you in the store but you weren't there."

Gilbert was sitting on the couch, and wasn't watching TV for a change. He was humming to himself and hugging his legs close to his chest.

"Huh? Oh... I was out."

Antonio raised an eyebrow. "Well I'm glad to see you aren't moping around anymore. There are some pasta leftovers that Lovi brought over in the fridge if you want them."

"Okay. Thanks." Gilbert said absently.

"Oh, and your brother called." Antonio said.

"What did _he_ want?" Gilbert rolled his eyes.

"He wanted you to call him back. He didn't say what he wanted."

"Okay."

Gilbert walked to the phone and quickly dialed the number he'd memorized for just this reason. His brother was extremely awkward and always needed love advice. The only problem was that Gilbert was a total loser and couldn't even figure out his _own_ problems.

After four rings, Ludwig picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, bro."

"Gilbert. I... need help."

Gilbert chuckled. "Again? Who with this time? Sakura? Katrina?"

Silence on the other end.

"Bro? You there?" Gilbert asked, surprised his awkward younger brother wasn't responding.

"It's... Feliciano..."

Gilbert coughed a few times. "What?" He must have misheard him.

"FOR GOD'S SAKE, GILBERT. IT'S FELICIANO."

"O-oh..." Well, Gilbert hadn't expected THAT.

"What do I do?!" Ludwig demanded, desperately.

"You're... gay?" Gilbert choked out.

Silence for a few seconds. Then a small, "Yeah."

Well, Gilbert was stumped. He had no idea how to give advice to a man... about another man. And... of all people in his life that could be... gay! His brother? Seriously? His little brother, who was a big sports guy, who served in the military, who had always been surrounded by a crowd of girls in high school. Gilbert was too baffled to say anything.

"Gilbert?" Ludwig whispered.

"I-I... I can't help you on this one, bro. I really have no idea."

"Okay... sorry I sprung it on you like that..."

"Nah... it's cool, man. Hey, if it makes you feel any better... Feliciano is pretty girly. I really would NOT be surprised at all if he was too."

Feliciano was Ludwig's Italian best friend. He was really bubbly, cheerful, chatty... not a very pleasant person. Gilbert couldn't really keep up a conversation with the guy without wanting to strangle him. He always hung all over Ludwig and gave him hugs and asked him to tie his shoelaces... Gilbert had always wondered why Ludwig was friends with him, but now he was starting to get it.

"I wouldn't be surprised either, to be honest. But the problem is... what if he doesn't feel that way?" Ludwig sounded really nervous.

"It's cool, man. Just be yourself." Gilbert was trying to keep his shaky voice in check.

"Okay... Hey, I'll see you later, okay?" Ludwig said.

"Yeah. Talk to you later."

They both hung up.

Gilbert plopped back down on the couch. There was too much to think about. Between Elizaveta and his gay younger brother... His head was spinning. It was too much for one day.

He then decided to make a list. Making lists always calmed him down.

* * *

_WHAT I LIKE ABOUT ELIZAVETA:_

_-SHE SMELLS NICE_

_-SHE HAS PRETTY EYES_

_-SHE IS COOL_

_-SHE FORGOT THAT I'M A JERK_

_-SHE LIKES GOOD MUSIC_

_-SHE DOESN'T KNOW HOW PRETTY SHE IS_

_-SHE IS RIDICULOUSLY HOT_

_-SHE HAD FUN ON A PLAYGROUND_

_-HER FAVORITE COLOR MATCHES THE WALLS OF HER STORE_

_-SHE IS HOT (I THINK I ALREADY SAID THAT)_

_-SHE'S BRAVE_

_-SHE'S KIND OF SCARY_

* * *

Gilbert fell asleep before he could finish the list... It would have taken all night to be honest._  
_


End file.
